Iran declares Strait of Hormuz 'completely open' during ceasefire
Tehran: The Iranian government on Friday declared that the Strait of Hormuz is completely open for commercial ships for the remaining period of the ceasefire, in line with that in Lebanon.
Seyed Abbas Araghchi, Foreign Minister of Iran, announced the key development in a post on X saying, "In line with the ceasefire in Lebanon, the passage for all commercial vessels through (the) Strait of Hormuz is declared completely open for the remaining period of the ceasefire."
He added that the safe passage will only be applied on the coordinated route as already announced by Ports and Maritime Organisation of the Islamic Republic of Iran."
Following Araghchi's announcement, oil prices plunged by about 9%, extending previous losses. As per Reuters, Brent crude futures dropped by $8.46, or 8.5%, to $90.93 a barrel at 1300 GMT.
The same announcement was reiterated by US President Donald Trump on Truth Social as he wrote, "Iran has just announced that the 'Strait of Iran' is fully open and ready for full passage."
In another post, he added that the American blockade on Iranian ships and ports “will remain in full force” until Tehran reaches a deal with the U.S., including on its nuclear program.
"The Strait of Hormuz is completely open and ready for business and full passage, but the naval blockade will remain in full force and effect as it pertains to Iran, only, until such time as our transaction with Iran is 100% complete," he said, adding that this process should go very quickly in that most of the points are already negotiated.
A 10-day ceasefire announced by Trump and agreed on by Lebanon and Israel, also potentially boosted efforts to extend a truce between Iran, the United States and Israel.
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Power tariffs under BESCOM to rise from May 1
Bengaluru (PTI): Power bills for consumers under the Bangalore Electricity Supply Company Limited (BESCOM) will go up from May 1, following an order issued by the Karnataka Electricity Regulatory Commission (KERC) on Friday.
The hike comes after KERC allowed the BESCOM to recover a revenue deficit of Rs 2,068 crore incurred in 2024-25, from the consumers.
As a result, for every unit of electricity consumed in 2024-25, the customers will be charged an additional 56 paise, it said.
"BESCOM shall calculate, for each of the active consumers of FY2024-25 the amount to be recovered based on their actual energy consumption during FY2024-25. Such amount shall be recovered during FY 2026-27 in equal monthly instalments, to be called as 'FY25 True up Charges', commencing from the first meter reading date falling on or after 1 May 2026 and concluding with the reading date ending on 30 April 2027," the order said.
"It is further ordered that BESCOM shall maintain a separate head of account, allocated for the purpose, to record the adjustment of the said amount to ensure full recovery of the deficit," it added.
Similarly Chamundeshwari Electricity Supply Corporation Limited (CESC) has also recorded a revenue deficit of Rs 121.71 crore and can collect an additional 15 paisa per unit for consumption in 2024-25, official sources said.
